An average day in Starmade

[JinM]

Well I don't think bans are justified if people make additional stations inside their own home galaxy, if they have no turrets on them, and act only to give more creative build possibilities. I think at least a warning from the admin beforehand to not overuse it would be neccessary.

Most people are only pvping like 10% of their time on server, and the rest of the time is mostly building, minining and lurking. It's not like most of the playtime on servers is dedicated towards pvp, most of it is dedicated to non-pvp stuff. So I can't really understand being too strikt additional hb-bases, as the players - even on the biggest server like Brierie, Freaks or LvD - are not pvping more than 20% of their online time. The rest of it is building, mining and lurking. Starmade is more about building and other non pvp related stuff anyway when I look at an average day on Starmade either when I monitor servers or when I read what people tell they do here in the thread. Why then be so crazily hardcore for pvp rules, when the people are in Starmade for non-pvp related stuff like building anyway?


I think if you make an exception for alt-account infiltrators, you should also make an exception for alt-account creative builders.

I think it's kinda unfair to directly ban someone for using one possibility that an alt account gives, and other actions with alt-accounts are not even punished. Either you define the whole usage of alt-accounts as forbidden (for example you say alt-account usage is exploiting), or you don't. Not banning for alt-infiltration, and directly swinging the ban hammer on alt-homebases without agressive purposes is a bit arbitrary.


I mean those alt-hbs in my own system are not even having any impact on the pvp as long as I don't place a turret on them. Who in the world cares if I deposit my backup ressources and fleet in the void, or in my own galaxy? Either way I am not using them in 90% of the time!

But if there are more cool stations with interesting builds in my own galaxy, this would make a positive difference. It would encourage people to travel around. But I can't make more rp-related stations if they are not protected with hb-protection and because Starmade still sux in this way. We have to agree on ways around the games limitations and learn to adapt to the alpha instead of thinking in black and white.

 

[MeRobo]

Most people are only pvping like 10% of their time on server, and the rest of the time is mostly building, minining and lurking. It's not like most of the playtime on servers is dedicated towards pvp

I'm assuming your definition of pvp is actual combat. However I'm of the opinion, that you can't see things like mining and combat as completely detached from each other, due to the need for ressources to acquire ships with which to engage in combat, therefor mining, while not pvp in and of itself, may very well be seen as an action supporting pvp and therefor time spent mining is indirectly dedicated to pvp.

I think if you make an exception for alt-account infiltrators, you should also make an exception for alt-account creative builders.

This equivalence doesn't work out. In game infiltration requires presence on a specific server, while creative building is not required to take place on a survival/pvp server and could be moved to a build server like Cake Build Server or Serene Horizons. (btw, this is not ment as some kind of endorsement of infiltration)

I mean those alt-hbs in my own system are not even having any impact on the pvp as long as I don't place a turret on them.

This is false. They offer an additional place for retreat you could dock a ship to.

 

[JinM]

I'm assuming your definition of pvp is actual combat. However I'm of the opinion, that you can't see things like mining and combat as completely detached from each other, due to the need for ressources to acquire ships with which to engage in combat, therefor mining, while not pvp in and of itself, may very well be seen as an action supporting pvp and therefor time spent mining is indirectly dedicated to pvp.

Preparing for a fight is is ofcourse pvp-related. But in fact you are doing creative stuff, even mining can be seen as creative as you are putting your mind free to think about possibilities. Why not have some nicer universe to do such stuff in? If you are not fighting 70% of your time, why not have some nice buildings to visit or interact with in regards of minigames, stations with lore (a factions homebase is often only set up to provide ressources and docking), and other creative builds?

I say the time your are not directly fighting can be get nicer with some additional stations to visit, and the time you spend fighting is not getting worse if there are some additional alt-homebases around if they are set up to not shoot.

This equivalence doesn't work out. In game infiltration requires presence on a specific server, while creative building is not required to take place on a survival/pvp server and could be moved to a build server like Cake Build Server or Serene Horizons. (btw, this is not ment as some kind of endorsement of infiltration)

I can't really support your opinion here, because right now only Freaks and Brierie are even populated enough to not feel like playing singleplayer. Telling me to go to an empty server is not really a solution mate. I mean this is what this argument is about? Or did I understand this point wrong?

This is false. They offer an additional place for retreat you could dock a ship to.

Uhm there is only one circumstance I can even imagine that a fight happens right in front of anyone's homebase, and that is if I would go mining.

And all the other pvp fights are not in front of anyone's homebase. I mean how do you generally pvp on servers? Why would anyone fight another real pvper in front of their homebase? There is the unspoken rule, that a classical fight happens away from homebases so turrets don't intercept or participators are retreating to safety. If people don't want to fight they just turtle in their homebase anyway. So no big difference here.


And for mining/surprise attacks it is not really such a big benefit. When I mine I can just instajump away. And when I want to dock my fleet the homebase is often allready big enough.

Even if I assume that the jump inhibitors work: A surprise attack when I mine is in 95% of the cases faster than anyone would be able to dock it's miner at any station even if the station is right next to the sector I am mining in.

And how often do people get ambushed as they are mining anyway? In reality such pvp fights make only 1 out of 100 fights on a server. Going out and hunting someone who is mining? Comeon first of all no real pvper tells others when he is mining, and secondly they get a message as soon as anything enters your galaxy, and thirdly there are like 40 possible sectors in the galaxy where asteroids spawn. If you get surprised when you mine, you are so new to the game, that you don't even know that you can use alt-accounts.

 

[Ryuusei]

My average Starmade day:

Launch the client, looking to continue some design work for a large-scale RPPvP station.
Start the Universe
Java has a RuntimeException error and universe does not start.
Restart my client
Attempt to load up said universe, only to receive the same error
Make dummy universe to try and force Java to start a universe, which succeeds.
Leave dummy universe to load up regular one, which succeeds.
Come to see the universe is now completely random and my in-progress station is nowhere to be found, and I spawn 2 systems from where I am suppose to spawn.
Ragequit and hope tomorrow will be better.

 

[Nosajimiki]

Thanks for your friendly advice. I totally agree with all your points.

However I would use alt-accounts anyway to protect such outpost stations with homebase protection.

And those homebase protected stations then would serve as extended rp-projects. Like an abandoned ship 1 sector away from my original homebase.

Backlash = my comment about exploitive.

There is a less exploitative approach that is permitted on most server, but it requires a lot of exploration and a bit of intuition. It involves a rare kind of place in the game that naturally has HB protection that many players use in lue of voiding their warships. Generally, this other approach is not considered a punishable exploit since these places natural exist in the game and they take an appropriate level of work to discover for the pay-off.

Also, some servers like LvD frequently accept user contributions for RP bases to be added to the server's lore. You can request a BUILD account where you will be given an alt account in deep-deep-deep space in a locked sector and creative mode to build your base, and if the admins like it, they can add it to the main galaxy as a landmark. Also, factions that gain an established presence on the server are allowed to build "embassies" at spawn which are basically buildings that you dock to the city grid. They are actually pretty neat because they sort of create a museum of all the major factions that are or ever were on that server since they've been able to keep them through server resets; so, they have buildings there dedicated to factions that were once great and uncontestable powers that have now mostly faded into obscurity.

 

[JinM]

it requires a lot of exploration

Whats the point of a creative build if people never find or visit it?

 

[Nosajimiki]

Whats the point of a creative build if people never find or visit it?

They are usually used as space ports for docking warships so you don't lag you HB or as extra secure resource caches.

For creative build stations you want people to interact with, I'd suggest LvD. Benevolent is always looking for content creators, especially if you want to make something that would make for a good quest area. His quest wrapper is pretty flexible, so, if you talk with him about it ahead of time, he can probably help you support RP ideas that aren't natively viable within starmade standard. Also, the server already has ~18 protected stations on a warpgate network accessible from spawn, plus several others associated with quests. Some of them are vanilla bases, so I'm sure giving some of them a more unique flavor would be appreciated as well. That way, you could have your bases protected in on an mmo server where plenty of people could interact with it without risking a ban

 

[JinM]

They are usually used as space ports for docking warships so you don't lag you HB or as extra secure resource caches.

For creative build stations you want people to interact with, I'd suggest LvD. Benevolent is always looking for content creators, especially if you want to make something that would make for a good quest area. His quest wrapper is pretty flexible, so, if you talk with him about it ahead of time, he can probably help you support RP ideas that aren't natively viable within starmade standard. Also, the server already has ~18 protected stations on a warpgate network accessible from spawn, plus several others associated with quests. Some of them are vanilla bases, so I'm sure giving some of them a more unique flavor would be appreciated as well. That way, you could have your bases protected in on an mmo server where plenty of people could interact with it without risking a ban

Thanks for suggestion. You have some nice ideas. I allready talked with Bene about how he sees alt accounting. LvD is the only server where the admin openly said that alt accounts are seen as part of the game, including the homebases as long as distant from others. So I wouldn't even need the creative rights.

That they incorporate players stations into the universe as protected stations was not known to me before.

Making stations for a server is a nice idea but not really what I want. Building on a server when others visit you while you are in survival and building in creative / giving a server a finished station are different things.

And even though I like the LvD setup generally, I am allways preffering a populated server. For example right now it's empty. I have to go on Brierie or Freaks to not feel like in singleplayer.

 

[Nosajimiki]

Yeah, Power 2.0 hit its player base particularly hard since it was home to so many of the older and more PvP minded factions.

 

[Matt_Bradock]

Yeah, Power 2.0 hit its player base particularly hard since it was home to so many of the older and more PvP minded factions.

You know it's bad when even Veilith and the Magitek Knights go off to play Empyrion instead, because even its simple-as-a-rock slugfest capital PvP doesn't suck as much now that at least it's working.

 

[Skwidz]

So it would be against the rules to use an alt to create a hb for the purpose of a public "amusement park" station such as a tank pvp arena or race track?

 

[Matt_Bradock]

So it would be against the rules to use an alt to create a hb for the purpose of a public "amusement park" station such as a tank pvp arena or race track?

In that specific case, make sure to contact the server's admin. Any reasonable admin would even help you if you tried to create a unique spectacle that might draw players in there, might even protect a sector for you so you don't need a HB there.

P.S. I'm still waiting for someone to build a Rocket League style arena now that the physics sim is useable enough for a proper sized ball (3x3x3 or 5x5x5 sphere) not to clip out that easily.

 

[Nosajimiki]

So it would be against the rules to use an alt to create a hb for the purpose of a public "amusement park" station such as a tank pvp arena or race track?

That is a question for your specific server admins. On LvD, that sort of things is very much encouraged, other servers may have more hardline rules against it since such a base could still be used as a front to mask second home base functionality.

 

[therimmer96]

So it would be against the rules to use an alt to create a hb for the purpose of a public "amusement park" station such as a tank pvp arena or race track?

Admins can set entities and sectors to be invulnerable without the need for alt accounts.

 

[Skwidz]

Thanks Matt_Bradock, Nosajimiki, and therimmer96. First I'll have to get my "average day" work done of my latest ship, finish a replica of the ISS, then maybe start work on an arena.

 

[EricBlank]

I typically log onto the forums to acknowledge all the lengthy, often seemingly pointless arguments folks get into, get sick of listening to it and start up the game to build some neat new vehicles and maybe screw with the ai. My biggest bug right now thats been getting to me is entities docked to rails loading in stuck at bizarre angles they never should have been in. I made some sick cargo bay doors for my new cargo ship only for them to get all wonky on me, might do something a little simpler just to make it more foolproof. Little disappointed some of the weapons arent working properly but hey, i can refit ships whenever i like. And ive been neglecting my economic/civilian inventory for a while anyway.

Ive also been contemplating making a hockey game out of repulsor pucks